Continuing Education

What are the standards?

AIBD Certified Members and NCBDC CPBDs, regardless of their membership affiliation, must get 8 continuing education credits each year in order to recertify. At least 4 of the 8 credits must be “Primary” credits and the others can be “Elective” credits. The differences are referenced in the section “What can I get credit for?” on page 8. The annual time frame begins when the individual becomes certified, not necessarily when their AIBD membership renews. If a new Certified Member is already certified, is an architect, engineer or registered residential designer in the State of Nevada, the certification and membership effective and expiration dates will be the same. Otherwise, there is a pretty good chance a member’s renewal date is different than their recertification date.sa

NCBDC’s primary purpose is to certify professional level building designers. The basic credential is called the Certified Professional Building Designer (CPBD) and is a prerequisite for many AIBD positions and programs. All CPBDs must earn 8.0 continuing education units (credits) each year in order to recertify and to continue using the NCBDC certification mark and CPBD designation. Individuals who do not meet the recertification educational requirement will have their credential revoked and given 36 months to rectify the situation. After 36 months, the credential is terminated and the individual must begin the certification process again, using the policies and procedures in place at the time the new application is submitted.

In addition to CPBDs, AIBD recognizes registered architects, engineers and residential designers (in Nevada) as Certified Members of AIBD. These individuals must also recertify their membership level by obtaining 8.0 credits each year of membership. Individuals who do not meet the membership recertification educational requirement will have their membership level changed to Professional Member. Certified Membership can be regained when the educational requirements have been caught up.

How do I report my CEs?

There are a number ways to let the AIBD staff know that you’ve attended an education event.

All reporting must include the following items.
• The individual’s name and phone number or email;
• The name of the presenter, the title of the course or topic discussed, the length of the event, and supporting documentation verifying participation or supporting the credit request as provided in this policy.

To assist with organizing the information, the AIBD National Office has created a comprehensive CE Credit Self Reporting Form (below). The form asks for some basic personal information. Step 1 and either Step 3 or 4 are required, Step 2 is optional. The other steps help guide the user through the policy while filling out the form. Step 7 lists all the possible events that earn credit and describes the documents that best verify the event was a2ended and completed. Steps 9 through 14 ask for information about the event and provides for the opportunity to have the form signed by the presenter as verification of a2endance.

How do I check my status?

To verify what date your certification expires and what events you’ve been awarded continuing education credit for, visit www.AIBD.org or www.NCBDC.com and click the links to enter the “Member Center” where you can log into your account. Whether you are an AIBD member or not, AIBD and NCBDC share the same database and everyone logs into their account using the same portal. The email address the Institute has on file is your identifying mark. If your email address has changed, you must use your old email address to access your account and update your personal information. If you have never logged in before or if it’s been a long time and you’ve forgotten your password, simply click the “forgot password” link to have an email sent to your inbox which will contain the instructions for setting a new password. Once logged in, click the “My Continuing Ed and Certification” tab to access all of your certification information as well as your continuing education transcript.

AIBD approval is a powerful recognition and marketing tool that assists organizations in attracting credentialed professional building designers to appropriate provider events and programs. Of the 8.0 required credits, AIBD policy requires at least half of the credits be obtained by attending events presented by an AIBD-CEP, AIBD, an AIBD society, an AIBD chapter, or another organization with a recognized continuing education program.

AIBD reviews applications for approval of single continuing education events such as workshops or conferences and organizations or individuals seeking to become AIBD-Approved Continuing Education Providers (AIBD-CEPs). Organizations applying for AIBD-CEP status may seek approval for both live trainings and for certain types of distance learning programs. AIBD retains the right to approve or disapprove any continuing education provider or program.